UCLA is closing its remaining childcare centers next June, leaving about 300 families worried and upset.
Parents are protesting, circulating a petition and hoping public pressure will keep the centers open.
Most who use UCLA’s Early Care and Education Program and the University Parents Nursery School are students, faculty, and staff.
Erica Weaver, an English professor. Her children are 4 years old and 18 months old. She said Care is in really short supply.
“I really don't know of other options for infant care beyond Bright Horizons, which has a waitlist and is subsidized by UCLA, I believe, to the tune of $1.2 million, although I might be wrong on those exact figures,” she told KNX News’ Emily Valdez. “But it's interesting UCLA is willing to subsidize a third-party corporate provider but not to continue their own extremely high-quality care, which of course has had huge problems in the past.”
A month of child care costs about $3,000 per child, depending on the age.
UCLA did not give KNX News a reason they are closing the child care centers, but its main budget is in a massive deficit. Also, Christopher Rodriguez, a 25-year staff member, was accused of child molestation in 2024.
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